A review of skin aging: Tanaka at the Lion’s Life Science Research Center has published a review on skin aging and its control. The article covers intrinsic aging, photoaging and antiaging management. Topics reviewed include the following: environmental factors influencing skin aging; histological changes occurring in intrinsic aging and photoaging; the developmental process of wrinkles; effects of retinoic acid and its derivatives; skin pigmentation disorders due to excessive melanin formation and tyrosinase inhibitors; antiaging strategies; and treatment cosmetics.

Moisturization: Schweikert et al. discuss a way to achieve the moisturization effects of hyaluronic acid on dry skin by using instead a new cosmetic ingredienta that includes Tamarindus indica seed extract. Effects of the new ingredient were assessed and compared with those of hyaluronic acid applied topically under the same conditions using the same vehicle. These effects were measured using skin bioengineering methods on the skin of healthy volunteers after repeated application of similar formulations with and without the active substances.

After elimination of the control and placebo-induced skin roughness variations by individual corrections, treatment with hyaluronic acid clearly appeared to increase skin roughness, while treatment with the new ingredient led to a decrease in skin roughness. It also was apparent that treatment with the new ingredient decreased width and number of skin surface fi ne lines and wrinkles, while hyaluronic acid showed no effect.